“AWAYY is a proof of concept drama/sci-fi film. On the eve of a small-town waitress moving to New York City, a solar flare disrupts her plans.” Filmmakers Aqsa Altaf & John X Carey on AWAYY which screens at SxSW 2022.
Welcome to SxSW and congratulations! Is this your first SxSW experience?
Yes! SXSW has always celebrated the independent filmmaker spirit and has shown some of the best genre films that are more on the human drama end of the spectrum with a genre lens. SXSW was our dream festival to play our film at.
How did you first hear about SxSW and wishing to send your project into the festival?
SXSW is one of the top festivals and has always been a goal of ours to have our film play there.
Tell me about the idea behind your project and getting it made!
We had this idea of what if our present selves could meet our 18 year selves. Our immediate reactions were “Ewww, my eighteen year old self was stupid, immature, etc.” and the more we examined that, the more we realized how harshly we judge our younger selves. It’s literally the most common reaction we get when we ask this question to everyone we meet. Yes, we are not proud of every decision our 18 year old self made, there was definitely something pure, not as jaded and hopeful about our younger selves that we can learn from. This is the seed of inspiration that sent us exploring this idea through a story.
Who are some of your creative inspirations? Any particular filmmaking talent or movie that inspired you for this project?
We’ve always been a fan of the human sci-fi films like CONTACT and CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND and really resonate with that kind of life affirming stories that explore the depth of humanity cinematically through a genre lens. We don’t see films in that space as much these days except for INTERSTELLAR and ARRIVAL, and we hope to add to it with our work.
How did you put this together from a technical viewpoint? What sort of cameras/lenses did you use and/or did you have any creative challenges in making it?
Awayy is essentially a time travel film and we knew right off the bat we wanted to shoot this film on 16mm. Film has such a timeless and classic feel to it. And what we captured felt like magic as there is something fleeting about the nature of film as you get what you get and we find that beautiful. We are very happy we stood by this decision. As a filmmaker shooting an ambitious film like on this film required we go the extra ten miles during prep and rehearsals.
What would you suggest to film festivals as a way to show more short films or make them more accessible to audiences across the country?
We really appreciate that SXSW has this episodic pilot program because AWAYY was always meant to be a proof of concept short film as opposed to a “short film”. I think it is essential festivals support filmmakers in all genre spaces across all mediums especially in this ever changing landscape we are part of. We love the all inclusiveness of SXSW.
If you had one piece of advice to offer someone to get their start as a creator or filmmaker in the industry, what would you suggest?
Write and direct as much as you can. With every project we do, we grow and hone in our voices tremendously. Being a filmmaker is not a theoretical endeavor. You have to do to grow.
And finally, what is your favourite short film of all time?
It’s between WASP by Andrea Arnold and GASMAN by Lynn Ramsey. We also love Pioneer by David Lowery.
AWAYY Official Site.
This film and many others like it will be showing at South By Southwest taking place March 11-20. For more information point your browser to www.sxsw.com!